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  • Publish ‘names of contractors that disappeared with money for power projects’, SERAP tells Fashola

    Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has sent a Freedom of Information request to Babatunde Fashola, SAN, Minister of Power, Works and Housing urging him to use his good offices and leadership position to “urgently provide information on specific names and details of contractors and companies that allegedly collected money for electricity projects but failed to execute any projects, starting from the return of democracy in 1999 to 2018.”

     

    According to SERAP, former Nigeria’s Vice President and Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar reportedly blew the whistle on Channels TV when he said, “Contractors were given some contracts for power projects and were paid hundred percent upfront. The money went down the drain. Up till now, we are not holding the contractors responsible. People have collected money upfront one hundred percent and have disappeared; and have not even done any work.”

     

    SERAP said: “The revelation by Alhaji Atiku is entirely consistent with SERAP’s recent report titled: From Darkness to Darkness: How Nigerians are Paying the Price for Corruption in the Electricity Sector, which also revealed how over N11 trillion meant to provide regular electricity supply was allegedly squandered by politicians and contractors under successive governments.”

     

    In the FOI request dated 4 January, 2019 and signed by SERAP senior legal adviser Bamisope Adeyanju, the organization said: “By publishing the names of the contractors and their registration details, if any, Nigerians will be better able to hold them to account for allegedly absconding with public funds meant for electricity projects, thereby throwing the country into perpetual darkness and socio-economic stagnation as well as denying people their human rights.”

     

    The organization also said: “publishing the names will make it hard for contractors and companies to get away with complicity in grand corruption. If the requested information is not provided within 14 days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter, SERAP shall take all appropriate legal actions under the Freedom of Information Act to compel you to comply with our request.”

     

    The FOI request read in part: “It is important to show that your office and indeed this administration would not shield or allow ingrained wrongdoing by contractors and companies in the power sector to go unpunished. Unless the names of the contractors and companies are disclosed and widely published, alleged corrupt contractors and companies executing electricity projects will not be deterred and the victims of corruption that they committed will continue to be denied justice and effective remedies.”

     

    “SERAP urges you to publish the names of all contractors and companies that have been engaged in the power sector since the return of democracy in 1999 to date, details of specific projects and the amounts that have been paid to the contractors and companies, details on the level of implementation of electricity projects and their specific locations across the country.”

     

    “SERAP is concerned that to date no contractors or companies who allegedly collected money for electricity projects not executed or poorly executed have been investigated for corruption let alone prosecuted and fined. Senior public officials who apparently served as intermediaries for these contractors and companies continue to escape justice.”

     

    “We are concerned that allegations of corruption involving many contractors and companies in the power sector have continued to impair, obstruct and undermine the ability of successive governments to provide Nigerians with access to regular and uninterrupted electricity supply.”

     

    “Contractors and companies that allegedly disappeared with public funds meant for electricity projects may also be liable for aiding and abetting the commission of acts of grand corruption.”

     

    “SERAP also urges you to refer contractors and companies that allegedly collected hundred percent payment upfront to appropriate anticorruption agencies for further investigation, and where there is relevant admissible evidence, for them to face prosecution.”

     

    “Doing this will show your willingness to end a pattern of corruption in the power sector and to improve access of Nigerians to regular and uninterrupted electricity supply. It will also allow citizens to track the level of execution of electricity projects by contractors and companies and reduce impunity for corrupt acts in the sector.”

     

    “Failure to publish the names of alleged corrupt contractors and companies in the power sector will undermine the government’s oft-expressed commitment to holistically fight grand corruption and improve access of Nigerians to regular and uninterrupted electricity supply.”

     

    “Similarly, failure to take punitive and dissuasive measures would allow corrupt contractors and companies to continue to undermine the rule of law and socio-economic development of the country, restricting access of disadvantaged and marginalized communities to regular and uninterrupted electricity supply.”

     

    “SERAP notes that the UN Convention against Corruption to which Nigeria is a state party contains requirements of integrity and honesty in economic, financial or commercial activities-in the public and private sectors. It also imposes obligations on the government to ensure that sanctions imposed for corruption on natural and legal persons are effective, proportionate and dissuasive.”

     

    “We urge you to establish online national database for all contractors and companies, shareholders and others that might have any ownership interests in companies responsible for executing power projects in the country. We also urge you to disclose if there any on-going investigation or prosecution of allegedly corrupt contractors and companies in the electricity sector.”

     

    “By Section 1 (1) of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act 2011, SERAP is entitled as of right to request for or gain access to information, including information on alleged corrupt contractors and companies that have collected money for electricity projects and disappeared with public funds rather than executing the projects.”

     

    “By Section 4 (a) of the FOI Act when a person makes a request for information from a public official, institution or agency, the public official, institution or urgency to whom the application is directed is under a binding legal obligation to provide the applicant with the information requested for, except as otherwise provided by the Act, within 7 days after the application is received.”

     

    “The information being requested does not come within the purview of the types of information exempted from disclosure by the provisions of the FOI Act. The information requested for, apart from not being exempted from disclosure under the FOI Act, bothers on an issue of national interest, public concern, interest of human rights, social justice, good governance, transparency and accountability.”

     

    “According to our information, former Nigeria’s Vice President and Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar blew the whistle on Channels TV when he said, “We collected money from local, state and federal governments and others. Contractors were given some contracts and were paid hundred percent upfront. Up till now, we are not holding the contractors responsible. People have collected money upfront one hundred percent and have disappeared; and have not even done any work.”

  • Stop complaining your epileptic power supply to me, Fashola tells Nigerians

    Stop complaining your epileptic power supply to me, Fashola tells Nigerians

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has said he is not directly responsible for the epileptic power supply currently experienced in some parts of the country.

    Fashola, who disclosed this while speaking at the Nextier Power Dialogue on Wednesday night in Abuja, told his listeners that there were problems in the power sector, but reminded them that it was not the Federal Government’s problem if citizens in the country do not have electricity, especially since the sector was privatised.

    He said, “There are problems without a doubt and we must deal with them. But let me remind you, all of the assets that the Ministry of Power used to control for power have been sold by the last administration before I came. And so if you don’t have power, it is not the government’s problem. Let us be honest.

    “The people who are operating the power sector, generation and distribution are now privately owned companies. I am here because I am concerned. If your telephone is not working, it is not the minister of communication that you go to. Let us be very clear.”

    The minister added, “So for those of you who want to weaponise electricity, face the businessmen who have taken it up. Let us be honest. If your bank over-charges you interest, is it the minister of finance you go to? So let’s be clear. This is now a private business by Act of parliament 2005.

    “My role is regulatory, oversight and policy, but I have a problem which is the fact that I can’t see a problem and turn my back, so I’m getting involved. So the people you should be talking to about transformers is not me, the ministry doesn’t supply transformers anymore.”

    Fashola further defended his position after another participant at the dialogue insisted that the minister supervises the ministry and that the Gencos and Discos were players under the FMPWH.

    Taking a cue from the analogy given by the participant while answering the question asked, the minister said, “I think that NERC (Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission) is the referee of the game. I am FIFA (Federation of International Football Association). And it is not right as you said that FIFA gets involved, because whether the referee makes a mistake or not the goal stands.

    “So the FIFA man does not enter the field to say go and change the result, but it’s an interesting analogy that I’ve also contemplated in my head and that’s why you didn’t catch me by too much surprise. However, it is important to allow the referee to continue to decide the game because investors like to know who decides.”

  • Gridlock: Fashola urges court to dismiss Falana’s suit on Oshodi/Apapa road

    The Minister of Works, Housing and Power, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN), has urged the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos to dismiss the fundamental right suit filed by human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN).

    The popular lawyer is challenging the failure of the Federal Government to remove the gridlock on the Apapa-Oshodi expressway.

    In his preliminary objection against the suit, Fashola challenged Falana’s locus standi to file the suit.

    He argued that Falana had not shown that he suffered over and above other motorists or the people using the road.

    The minister contended that the failure to repair the road had not restricted or breached Falana’s freedom of movement.

    In a counter-affidavit deposed to by Ayodele Otedola, a litigation clerk in the ministry on behalf of the minister, Fashola contended that the gridlock on the road “is always caused by tanker drivers who normally follow the route to the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) for the purpose of loading and offloading their goods”.

    The counter-affidavit stated that the minister’s “effort to clear the road and remove the trailers and tankers has not been easy but that effort has been redoubled to achieve this goal”.

    But Falana, in his fundamental right suit, argued that the state of the road constitutes a threat to his life and is a violation of his fundamental right to move freely in Lagos, as guaranteed by sections 33 and 41 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended, and articles 5 and 12 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act.

    He is seeking the following reliefs:

    “A declaration that the refusal or failure of the respondents to remove obstructions, repair and maintain the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway is illegal and unconstitutional as it constitutes a threat to the fundamental right to life of the applicant guaranteed by Section 33 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended, and Article 4 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act (CAP A9) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.”

    Falana prayed the court for a declaration that the failure or refusal of the respondents to make the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway safe for motorists is illegal and unconstitutional as it violates the applicant’s fundamental right to freedom of movement guaranteed by Section 41 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended, and Article 12 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act (CAP A9) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

  • PDP has looted Nigeria’s destiny – Fashola

    PDP has looted Nigeria’s destiny – Fashola

    The Minister of Works, Power and Housing, Babatunde Fashola SAN, on Monday blamed the Peoples Democratic Party for abandoned Federal Government projects across the country.

    He stated this while inspecting the building project of the Federal Secretariat, Awka, Anambra State.

    He described corruption during the PDP era as monumental, adding, “They looted our collective destiny, prospects, jobs and so on.

    “That’s why the masses are suffering today. That’s why there are no jobs. But we (APC) are trying to bring back smiles on the faces of Nigerians.”

    He said the 18-kilometre Umunya axis of the Onitsha/Enugu Expressway would be completed in May 2019, while the Federal Secretariat, Awka, the state capital, would be completed in the first quarter of next year.

    Fashola said the President Muhammadu Buhari government inherited those projects because past governments failed to complete them as a result of corruption.

    “They awarded the contract without paying contractors and when you don’t pay contractors, you create problems down the labour ladder.

    “For instance, the contract for this federal secretariat was awarded in 2012 by the previous administration without making funds available for its completion. If the money meant for it was not stolen, it would have been completed before now.

    “We are bringing back what was denied the people in the past to them; that’s the difference between a development administration and a corrupt regime”, the minister stated.

  • Fashola has depreciated under Buhari says Aisha

    Power, Works and Housing Minister Babatunde Fashola has depreciated under President Muhammadu Buhari, according to the co-convener of the BringBackOurGirls (BBOG) group, Aisha Yesufu.
    Fashola had last week in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, urged the people of the South West to support Buhari for 2019 so that power can return to the region in 2023.
    “Did you know that power is rotating to the South-West after the completion of Buhari’s tenure if you vote for him in 2019?
    “A vote for Buhari in 2019, means a return of power to the South-West in 2023. I am sure you will vote wisely,” Fashola said.
    The statement from the former Lagos State Governor had attracted reactions from many Nigerians with Aisha saying that people depreciated once they are working for Buhari.
    His statement has since stirred reactions especially from some leaders in the South-East who had on several occasions, maintained that President Buhari will be handing over power to the region in 2023 if he gets votes from the South-East.
    However, Aisha while reacting to the development, tweeted that “Some leaders build people around them. Others depreciate people around them. See how Fashola depreciated before our very eyes.”

  • Bode George blasts Fashola, APC, says leave 2023, fix port access roads

    A Chieftain of the PDP, Chief Olabode George, on Saturday advised the Minister of Power, Works & Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, to leave the issue of who becomes President in 2023 and focus on improving infrastructure in the country.
     
    George, a one-time Military Administrator of Ondo State, gave the advice while speaking to newsmen in Lagos.
     
    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that George was reacting to a statement made by Fashola on Thursday in Ibadan that a vote for President Muhammadu Buhari by the South West would guarantee the zone the Presidency in 2023.
     
    “Do you know that power is rotating to the South West after the completion of Buhari’s tenure if you vote for him?
     
    “A vote for Buhari in 2019 means a return of power to the South West in 2023. I am sure you will vote wisely, ‘’ Fashola had said at a town hall meeting on infrastructure.
     
    George said that roads in the country were begging for attention and that Fashola should fix those roads urgently rather than postulating about 2023.
     
    He noted that the two major roads leading to the Lagos ports were in a deplorable state and urged the minister to focus on fixing those roads in view of their importance to the economy.
     
    “Fashola is the Minister of Works. Look at the key major roads from the ports, they are in deplorable state and these roads are the gateway to the nation’s economy.
     
    “It costs a container to be moved from Apapa ports to Tin- Can to Ikeja N1million. Just one container and that is what it will cost the same container from Shanghai in China to Lagos.
     
    “So the minister needs to fix those roads now instead of postulating about 2023.These roads have not been maintained for years.
     
    “If goods cannot come out fast from the ports, it will affect those who are buying and selling and if things cannot go into the ports for export, how would people make money.
     
    “Fashola should be concerned about fixing these roads before May 2019 because he would come back someday to give account to the people,’’ he said.
     
    NAN reports that on June 17, 2017, the minister signed a N4.34 billion Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with AG Dangote Construction Company Lt and some other stakeholders for the reconstruction of the four-kilometre Apapa-Wharf Road.
     
    The project, with a completion period of one year, is funded by AG Dangote Construction Company Ltd., the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and Flour Mills of Nigeria.
     

  • Why Jonathan ‘quickly’ conceded defeat to Buhari in 2015 – Fashola

    The Minister for Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has said former President Goodluck Johnathan conceded defeat after the 2015 elections because he knew the nation would witness economic recession soon.
     
    Recall that the former president, before the announcement of the final results, in a move that shocked many political pundits, conceded defeat to the current president, Muhamadu Buhari, after a keenly contested polls.
     
    That was the first time an incumbent would be losing the top seat (and conceding victory) to an opposition party in Nigeria.
     
    Jonathan has been celebrated globally for his action, which many believe saved the country from political turmoil.
     
    The economy plunged into recession shortly after in 2015. The recession raged in 2016 and through late 2017 when the nation then emerged from it.
     
    However, Fashola, a former governor of Lagos State, said on Thursday at a South-west town hall meeting that the former president only relinquished power because he wanted to avoid being at the helm of affairs during the recession.
     
    The meeting was organised by the Minister for Information, Lai Mohammed, and held at the Emeritus Professor Theophilus Ogunlesi Hall, opposite University College Hospital, Ibadan, Oyo State.
     
    Fashola at the meeting also said the Goodluck government not only plunged the nation into recession but pushed it into debts.
     
    ”What was left behind were massive debts owed to contractors who had not been paid for three to five years and who had laid off thousands of workers and shut down equipment and plants.
     
    ”That was one of the reasons why the economy first went into, and, I suspect, one of the reasons they (Goodluck administration) quickly conceded defeat,” Fashola said.
     
    He explained that when the present administration assumed office in 2015, the three ministries previous budget was N19 billion for works, N5 billion for power, and N1.2 billion for housing making a total of N25.2 billion, “as at when the country was selling oil at $100 per barrel in that decade”.
     
    “In 2017, the All Progressive Congress (APC) led administration budget for works was N394 billion; power was N69.96 billion and housing was N64.9 billion (total- N529 billion) and oil price hovered between $40-$60 per barrel.
     
    ”Let me start by saying that my ministry is responsible for delivering some of Nigeria’s critical infrastructure for transport, electricity and housing,” he added.
     
    According to him, President Buhari has shown seriousness in providing adequate infrastructure to support the country.
     
    ”In a country where the population is growing faster than the infrastructure, the difference between these budgets must tell you that this government is more serious about providing infrastructure to support you.
     
    ”Another feature of the difference between these two budget sizes is that the last government was spending less on infrastructure for almost one decade when oil prices stayed at $100 per barrel during that decade. This government is spending more on infrastructure when oil prices largely hovered between $40-$60,” he said.
     
    He urged Nigerians to make the right choices in the next election “either to vote in a government that spends more on infrastructure or a government that spent less on infrastructure”.
     
    ”So, if you need more roads, more bridges, more power, more housing and the job opportunities and prosperity that their delivery will bring, your choice in the next election should be easier.
     
    ”Don’t go back to a budget of N25.2 billion for infrastructure, move forward with a budget for infrastructure which has grown to N529 billion in 2018.
     
    ”So, in making your choice, please consider who is the better manager. The one who did less with more or the one who did more with less.
     
    ”Again I urge you to reflect. Do you want to go back to doing less with more, or move forward with doing more with less?”

  • Epileptic power supply: SERAP gets court order against Fashola

    Epileptic power supply: SERAP gets court order against Fashola

    Anti-corruption group, Socio-Economic and Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), on Tuesday got court’s leave to file for a mandamus order against the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, over poor power supply in the country.
     
    The mandamus order is to compel Fashola to account for about N900bn sunk into the privatisation of the electricity sector in Nigeria without any positive result to show for it.
     
    The leave to seek mandamus order against Fashola was granted on Tuesday by Justice C.J. Aneke of the Federal High Court in Lagos.
     
    The leave followed an ex parte application filed and argued by SERAP’s lawyer, Ms Bamisope Adeyanju.
     
    The judge, after granting the leave, directed that Fashola should be put on notice while he adjourned the case till November 20.
     
    SERAP’s Deputy Director, Timothy Adewale, said the court’s ruling had brightened the prospect that Nigerians would finally get an explanation on why the country remained in darkness despite huge investment in the power sector by the Federal Government.
     
    SERAP seeks a mandamus order to compel Fashola “to account for the spending on the privatisation of the electricity sector and the exact amount of post-privatisation spending on generation companies, distribution companies and Transmission Company of Nigeria till date, and to explain if such spending came from budgetary allocations or other sources.”
     
    SERAP wants Fashola to be compelled “to provide specific details on the privatisation of the electricity sector, the names of all the companies and individuals involved; and to publish widely, including on a dedicated website, any such information.”
     
    The group said, “Most of the companies that won the bids had no prior experience in the power sector and little or no capacity at all to manage the sector.
     
    “The privatisation of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria has yielded the country total darkness. The gains of privatisation have been lost through alleged corruption, manipulation of rules and disregard for extant laws and lack of transparency in the exercise.”

  • Nigeria's power challenges can't be solved by magic – Fashola

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, has said electricity supply in the country is improving slowly and that challenges in the sector cannot be confronted with magic.

    Fashola, who spoke on Thursday at the inauguration of the 2x100MVA, 132/33kV power transformers at the Ejigbo Transmission Substation, Lagos, commended the Transmission Company of Nigeria for the ongoing projects across the country.

    “We have come to hand over this expanded transmission substation, the Ejigbo Transmission Substation, to the Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company. This substation was built in 1970; the capacity was 60MVA then; except for the addition of another 60MVA, this community has grown exponentially; so they have exceeded the installed capacity here,” he stated.

    The minister said President Muhammadu Buhari knew the substation required an expansion, adding that the capacity had been increased from 120MVA to 300MVA.

    He stated, “Between that time and when President Buhari came three years ago, some people were there. But they will come back to you; so, when they come back, ask them if they didn’t know where to buy transformers.

    “The problem of electricity is slowly being solved, one by one. Anybody will tell you he will do magic; tell him, ‘How?’ He should explain to you. We inherited 800 containers for power equipment left in the port for 10 years. President Buhari gave us approval, and we have recovered 690.”

    According to Fashola, there are 90 transmission projects ongoing across the country, and some of the recovered of pieces equipment are being used for them.

    “If you look at it, between 2015 and now, you ask yourself honestly: Are you spending more on diesel now or before? Are you running your generators for longer today or yesterday? So, are you seeing the power slowly staying longer? If you are truthful to yourself, you will know that it is better than yesterday. And we haven’t finished,” he said.

    The Managing Director, TCN, Usman Mohammed, said the installation of the two units of 100MVA transformers at the Ejigbo Transmission Substation was funded by the World Bank through the firm’s project management unit.

    He stated, “With the increase in the Ejigbo substation’s capacity, the TCN has substantially increased bulk electricity available in the substation for the Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company to take to its customers. Consequently, electricity consumers in Ejigbo, Egbe, Oke-Afa, Shasha, Ikotun, Ijegun, and Idimu town will now have improved power supply from Ikeja Electric.”

    “Other benefits include relieve of some overloaded feeders in Egbe, Shasha and Oke-Afa. Also, the Lagos airport will now have more load allocated to it. Improved power supply in these areas will positively impact the socio-economic development of the areas in particular and the economy at large.”

     

  • How we achieved 7,000 megawatts power generation in three years – Fashola

    Nigeria’s current power generation has reached 7000 Mega Watts, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, has said.

    Fashola said this on Friday in Calabar at the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing 4th Edition Retreat for top directors, heads of units and chief executives of agencies and parastatals.

    He said that although there was still more to be done, the ministry had moved forward from where it was three years ago.

    “Three years ago, the story was that power generation was the main problem of Nigeria. The story was that the distribution companies were complaining that they did not have enough energy to distribute to Nigerians.

    “We were distributing averagely 2,690 mega watts of electricity to Nigerians, but today, that story has changed, distribution has risen to 5,222 mega watts, an all time national high.

    “Transmission has reached 7,000 while generation has reached 7000. The problem has not finished but all we can say is that we have made progress.”

    The minister added that the Federal Government was constructing roads in virtually all the 36 states some of which were through collaborative efforts as well as direct interventions.

    According to him, the present administration has spent over N300 billion on roads construction since coming to power three years ago.

    “Before this administration, there was no housing policy but now we have one.”

    Fashola commended members of staff of the ministry for their support and teamwork, noting that without teamwork, the ministry would not have been able to achieve much.

    He said that the theme of the retreat which is “Goal Setting and Goal Reaching for a Focused Team,’’ was meant to reinforce the team spirit while setting out on its goals in the next 90 days.

    “It is a team that wins. We will go together as a team. If we bind together, everything is possible,” he said.

    The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Power, Mr Louis Edozien, said that the retreat was meant to appraise the performance of the ministry in the past 90 days.

    Edozien, who was represented by a Director, Mr Ahmed Abdul, added that the retreat would also afford the top management the opportunity to strategise on the plan of action for the next quarter.